Last week we shared the first five things you should know before choosing a telemarketing vendor.  This week, we’ll take a look at the remaining 8 tips.

6.  Do they allow a pilot or trial program?
Pilot programs with a set number of hours are standard in the industry.  Request a pilot prior to committing to a monthly deal and be sure it has a 30-day cancellation clause. Otherwise you could end up with 30 extra days of calling!

7. Will they help you develop a script or if they will require you to provide one?
Know up front so that you are prepared and ready to provide them with everything they need to make the campaign a success.

8.  Does the company provide you with a Project Manager for your campaign?
A Project Manager saves you a great deal of time and effort.  Their expertise in writing a script and managing the program will play a huge factor in how successful the program is.  A Project Manager should be available throughout the campaign on a daily basis as opposed to once a month or quarterly.

9. Does the company use predictive dialers?
If they do, then ask them to demonstrate their equipment and how it sounds before making a choice!  This can be done by having the company call you with the predictive dialer. Companies might say that this technology has improved, but often it is still easy to tell when someone is calling you using a predictive dialer.  Often these calls get dropped or there is a pause or click before the telemarketer can hear you answer. These clues will give away the fact that you are not making the calls from your own office and that you have hired a call center!

10. How many years of sales experience do the callers from the company have?
Callers should have several years of experience.  Otherwise you’re essentially paying to train someone.  Find out what the average number of years experience their callers have and ask them to guarantee a set number of experienced callers for the campaign.

11. What are the turnover rates and how long have your callers been with the company?
A company that has a high turnover rate should raise a red flag.  You want to use a telemarketing vendor that has callers who have been with the company for several years.

12. How are reports provided?
Know this up front — this isn’t something that should be determined once the campaign is in process.  Know exactly what type of reports are provided and how often.

13. Does the company accept credit cards?
If a company won’t accept credit cards, it’s usually because they have poor standing with the major merchant processors.  Poor standing may mean there are a lot of charge-backs from unhappy customers.

If a company does not accept credit cards, it could be a red flag as most reputable companies will accept major credit cards.  Credit cards are a safe method of payment and charges can be disputed if necessary.  Protect yourself from companies who don’t accept this form of payment!

We hope you’ve found these tips helpful!  If you’d like to learn more about OPK Telemarketing, the services we provide, or to ask us any of the questions in our tips — please contact us today.

Once you’ve decided that you’d like to outsource your sales and telemarketing needs, the next step is finding a vendor that’s the right fit for you.  The results of your campaign will have a lot to do with who you choose to provide these services and as such, you should take several factors into consideration before choosing.

Here are a few helpful tips regarding what you should know before you make your final choice:

1. If you are looking for a US based call center, make sure you are getting one!
Many telemarketing companies will open an office in the US and say their corporate offices are US-based, but then outsource the calling overseas.  Ask if they outsource the calling and specifically where calls are actually being made.

2.  Check their references.
The company you select should be happy and willing to provide you with references.  If they do not easily provide this information, move on to a new vendor.   Testimonials on a website are a good point of reference as well, but its also important to speak with some customers who have used similar services from the company you have selected.

3. The company should be established with several years in business.
Check the local secretary of state to see if the company has been registered and how long it has been registered for.  Don’t simply trust when a company says they’ve been in business for a certain number of years.  Do your research to verify if it’s true.

4. Visit the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and review their rating.
Visit the BBB website to check out the letter grade and number of complaints against the company you are considering.  If a company name does not come up, ask them if they operate under another name.  But keep in mind that this can be a red flag.

There are companies who change their names when they have an F rating with the BBB and then resume operations under a different name due to poor grades.

In addition to the letter grade, be sure to click on the company name to see how many complaints have been filed and in what time frame. If there are more than a few complaints in the past 36 months, you have reason to be concerned and look elsewhere.

5.  The company should be selling their services to you by number of hours, not number of calls.
If a company is selling their services to you by the number of calls instead of a number of hours, this could be very misleading! Their true hourly rate is really being hidden this way.

Their callers will be motivated to make as many “dials” as they can as fast as they can.  If your goal is quality conversations, leads, or appointments, you probably don’t want to buy services from a company that sells by the number of calls.

We’ll share part II of our vendor selection tips with you next week!